NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. — A New Port Richey neighborhood has gone nearly a week without drinkable water, and residents say they are not getting clear answers about what is causing the disruption.
Cortney Young, who lives in the affected area, said not having water since Saturday night has been especially difficult for families.
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“It’s just very inconvenient when you have a young baby, young child, trying to make bottles, bathe them, make food,” Young said.
The neighborhood receives its water from Orange Land Utilities, a small, privately owned utility company. Young said service interruptions have been an ongoing problem.
“We have repeated instances where we wake up in the morning and there’s no water and there’s been no contact from the water company,” she said.
Longtime resident Phil Aleci said problems began after Orange Land took over the water service.
“We’ve lost water many times. Not as long as this,” Aleci said.
Although water service was restored on Tuesday, residents said they were told by Orange Land Utilities that it was still not safe to drink or even allow in their mouths or eyes while showering.
“I don’t drink water. I buy water separately,” Aleci said.
“So even before this happened you never drank the water?” reporter Erik Waxler asked.
“No, never drank it because it’s out of the tap. It’s still not good,” Aleci replied.
Pasco County officials said Orange Land Utilities is temporarily connected to the county’s water system through a fire hydrant during the outage.
Tampa Bay 28 saw a worker briefly inspect the Orange Land water station, where a notice posted indicates the company failed to comply with a required lead testing procedure during the first half of this year. Caution tape was also seen around one of the pump houses, though the reason for it could not be confirmed.
Orange Land Utilities has not responded to requests for comment. Emails were also sent to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and the Public Service Commission to notify them about the issues.
Young said she wants more transparency from the utility.
“So we aren’t just out here wondering what’s going on or if my water is toxic,” she said.
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